by afsheen | Dec 1, 2015 | Blog, News
According to the Wall Street Journal: ” Heaven Hill Brands, the privately held owner of Evan Williams Bourbon, said Thursday it acquired fast-growing Deep Eddy Vodka, which has doubled its volume annually since its introduction in 2010. The Bardstown, Ky.-based liquor company declined to disclose terms of the deal. Deep Eddy has been on the market since at least May and was valued by an analyst at between $165 million and $300 million. Deep Eddy posted a 130% increase in volume to 330,000 nine-liter cases last year, according to industry tracker Impact Databank. Heaven Hill said Deep Eddy has grown to more than 500,000 cases today. “It’s a fast-growing brand that we believe is not anywhere close to having tapped its potential in what is still the largest alcohol beverage segment in the industry,” said Max Shapira, Heaven Hill’s president. Mr. Shapira said Deep Eddy would operate as an independent company within Heaven Hill and continue to be overseen by its current president, Eric Dopkins. Distribution and production will be managed in Texas where Deep Eddy is based…” More details on the acquisition and...
by afsheen | Dec 1, 2015 | News
According to the Wall Street Journal: “Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is backing another California startup, announcing a $120 million strategic investment in gaming company Kabam Inc. and a partnership to publish and distribute its free-to-play mobile games. The deal, which values San Francisco-based Kabam at more than $1 billion, comes after The Wall Street Journal reported Alibaba had held talks regarding a financing round for Snapchat Inc. that would have valued the mobile messaging startup at $10 billion. It also marks Alibaba’s latest push to reach more users before its upcoming initial public offering. The strategic infusion into Kabam is akin to recent moves by Chinese tech giants including Baidu Inc. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. to establish a foothold in new geographies by investing in tech startups. Alibaba has invested in nearly two dozen companies in recent years, specializing in everything from the delivery of large appliances to social networks and soccer clubs…” More on details and a link to the article can be...
